Chapter 270

When Escanor and his two companions returned to Axel City, rumors about the mysterious explosion in the outskirts had already spread like wildfire throughout the city.

Fortunately, after the first batch of adventurers conducted an investigation, they found no traces of the Demon Lord's army.

The uninformed citizens, having no other explanation, simply attributed it to some natural disaster and lowered the city's highest alert status.

The town soon returned to its usual bustling and peaceful state.

At the Adventurers' Guild, Aqua and the others had successfully exchanged their bounties for a substantial sum of money, and they managed to rent a modest inn.

After days of exhausting efforts, their long journey finally came to a conclusion, marking the official first step in their adventuring career!

After paying for the lodging, the remaining bounty was divided among the group.

However, despite her significant contributions, Darkness was kicked out of the reward-sharing process by the mischievous goddess under the pretext of being a "new member."

Surprisingly, Darkness didn't feel any resentment—in fact, she seemed a bit excited.

After all, being treated unfairly was precisely the sort of thing this perverted knight longed for!

With their shares of the bounty in hand, the tired trio of Escanor, Uta, and Kanna decided to stay and rest at the adventurer's inn.

Meanwhile, the others couldn't wait to rush into town and spend wildly—after all, with the "Giant Frog Catcher" and "Bait: Darkness" at their disposal, they had no financial worries.

At least the issue of food and drink was now completely resolved!

What surprised the group the most was that leading the charge for shopping was none other than the reclusive King!

"Say, King, what do you plan to spend your share on? Are you going to buy a new game console in this otherworld, meow?"

Seeing the deep longing in King's eyes, Meowth couldn't help but ask out of curiosity.

The last time King had shown such enthusiasm for shopping was back in Loguetown, East Blue.

At that time, they had ended up in a fierce conflict with the Arlong Pirates because of Aqua.

"If I get the chance, I might take a look, but right now, there's something even more important than a game console."

King's words were a bit more forthcoming when he was with Meowth.

After all, ever since they entered the Grand Line, many battles had been fought side by side, making them long-time partners.

As for Aqua, Brook, and Darkness, they had wandered off elsewhere to browse around.

"Something more important than a game console?"

Meowth frowned as they walked, thinking for a while but finding no suitable answer. Eventually, he just asked directly, "What is it, meow?"

King stopped, his gaze sweeping across the nearby shops. His face, marked by three scars, was filled with seriousness and determination.

"A wig," he said in a low voice.

With that, he quickly spotted a shop selling accessories and clothing, and he hurriedly headed over.

Meowth: "..." Sorry, I didn't see that one coming!

But as he looked at King's shiny bald head glistening in the sunlight, Meowth suddenly found it rather reasonable. He could empathize—if all his fur fell out, he'd probably feel worse than being killed!

And so, this strange duo of a man and a cat walked into a clothing store called "Adventurer's Lady" under the bewildered gazes of passersby.

When they came out, King now sported a head of soft, flowing, golden shoulder-length hair.

Surprisingly, his muscular, tough-guy look managed to pull off this somewhat feminine hairstyle, making him appear even more dashing than before!

"What about you, Meowth? What do you want to buy?"

King asked as he raised his hands to gently comb through his new locks.

Before, he hadn't understood the importance of hair, but now that he had it back, he realized how precious it was!

He should probably ask Aqua if she could cast a hair-regrowth spell for him.

Wait, even if she doesn't have one, he'd make her learn it from the adventurer's card system!

Meowth glanced around, then made a menacing face at a little girl hiding around the corner of an alley. The girl was so startled that she burst into tears, crying for her mother.

Satisfied with his successful prank, Meowth quietly replied, "I'm just looking to see if this otherworld has any unique steel materials or energy sources, meow."

When they returned to the world of pirates, they would be facing the strongest forces of the sea—both the Navy and the World Government.

With that in mind, the second-generation machine was barely going to cut it.

So he planned to take advantage of this relatively relaxed time to build a third-generation machine capable of standing up to an Admiral!

"You're building a third-gen machine? That's something to look forward to," King immediately understood Meowth's intentions.

"When the time comes, I'll need your help to test its performance, meow."

"No problem at all!"

The two continued chatting as they disappeared into the bustling streets.

They didn't notice the small, unremarkable doll, no bigger than a palm, that scurried away from where they had been standing and slipped into the clothing shop they had just visited.

"So, they're gathering materials to build a new machine?"

"A third-gen model, huh? Is it an upgrade of the giant frog catcher, or something even more interesting?"

The demon man, wearing an apron and a black-and-white mask, muttered to himself, his voice full of curiosity.

"A machine that's never been seen in this world—it sounds quite exciting~"

The Demon Lord's officer, Vanir, smiled faintly as a rather interesting idea popped into his head.

...

Meanwhile, Aqua, Brook, and the pervert knight wandered around aimlessly.

With Darkness constantly pestering them with perverted questions, even someone as good-natured as Brook was starting to reach his breaking point.

He wasn't worried about being labeled a pervert, but seriously, the bizarre play ideas coming out of this woman's mouth were drawing all kinds of disdainful stares from passersby.

Spending half a day with Darkness was one of the most exhausting experiences in Brook's hundred-plus years of existence.

Even more draining than those lonely years adrift in the Devil's Triangle!

One of the Four Emperors of the pirate world had finally fallen to the overwhelming power of a perverted knight's delusions.

But it wasn't something to be ashamed of. After all, this endlessly chattering Darkness was a "fearsome woman" who could even make Ghost and Truth cringe!

In contrast, Aqua, who had been through all kinds of storms, showed little reaction.

"Ah! There it is, a shop that sells fine wine!" she suddenly shouted excitedly.

Brook and Darkness looked up to see a rather modestly decorated store.

Aqua's pale finger was pointing to the bottles and jars of various colored liquids displayed outside the shop.

Among them were many sparkling adventurer tools and equipment.

"Uh, Miss Aqua, that's the city's item shop, not a place that sells alcohol,"

Darkness reminded her.

What on earth made you think those magical potions were fine wine?

She glanced down at Aqua skeptically.

"Huh? Those are magic potions?" The clueless goddess was deeply disappointed.

"But come to think of it, those potions and items seem quite valuable. Why would they just leave them out in the open like this?"

Darkness rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Isn't the owner worried about theft? Or is it some kind of promotion?"

"We're already here, so why not take a look?" Brook suggested.

He wasn't particularly interested in the otherworldly items—it was just an excuse to take a break.

If he kept wandering around with Darkness like this, his reputation in town would be ruined!

Meanwhile, inside the item shop...

Wiz sat behind the counter, staring gloomily at her nearly empty shop.

"Strange... According to Lord Vanir's advice, putting all the valuable items outside should have attracted some thieves by now."

"Maybe I should ask Lord Zyhark for some pointers when I go back to reinforce the barrier at the Demon Lord's castle."

"Or should I just put a sign outside that says 'Thieves Welcome'?"

Suddenly, Wiz's eyes lit up as she spotted her first customers of the day. She quickly stood up to greet them.

"Hello, and welcome to the Adventurer's Item Shop!"

While cheerfully greeting them, most of Wiz's attention was drawn to the skeleton with the afro hairstyle.

Why was an undead creature wandering around the town so openly? She hadn't seen anything like this before.

During the time Brook had become famous, Wiz had been away at the Demon Lord's castle, so she hadn't heard the adventurers talk about him.

But it didn't matter—soon, she would experience it firsthand.

"Such a kind and beautiful lady, might I ask if you could show me your panties?"

As always, Brook stayed true to his perverted style, trying to rid himself of the psychological trauma Darkness had left him with.

"Eh? Eh?! You're starting with that question? Are you one of Beldia's subordinates?"

Wiz was so startled by the unexpected inquiry that she stumbled backward, "I'm terribly sorry, but I can't tell you something so private!"

The one being harassed was Wiz, but the one who got excited was Darkness:

"He asked it! He actually asked it outright! As expected of my lifelong rival!"

"Yohohoho! This is the feeling, this is the conversation!"

Brook, having swept away his earlier gloom, was quite excited.

Wiz, on the other hand, was panicking inside. Where had these two bizarre customers come from?!

Her instincts told her to avoid these two at all costs.

So, she shifted her attention to the more "normal" blue-haired girl.

"Um, excuse me, would you like to steal any of the items outside?"

"Huh? What do you take me for?! A goddess would never do something so filthy and disgraceful as stealing!" The noble and arrogant goddess felt deeply insulted.

"Wait, so those items outside can be stolen?"

Brook asked cautiously, still recovering from his earlier shock.

Wiz paused to think for a moment, then sheepishly replied, "Not just anyone can steal them. Only thieves with bounties on their heads are allowed."

"Why?"

Darkness was utterly confused.

Wiz, being the honest person she was, answered sincerely:

"Because then I can capture them and turn them in for money."

"..."

The entire room fell into a stunned silence.

Aqua and Brook were left speechless.

What was wrong with this shopkeeper's head?!

Leaving valuable items out to get stolen was one thing, but openly telling customers that was your plan? Only an idiot would fall for that!

And this whole scheme felt oddly familiar—where had they encountered something like this before?

After some thought, Aqua and Brook exchanged glances and simultaneously said, "Zyhark!!"

"Huh? You know Lord Zyhark?"

Wiz looked utterly surprised.

The new Demon Lord's name was something only the demon tribes were privy to—how did these adventurers in this beginner's town know so soon?

Of course, that strange skeleton must be one of Beldia's men...

"Of course! That guy is my most loyal follower!"

Aqua boasted with pride, completely oblivious to the fact that Wiz, a local shopkeeper, even knew Zyhark's name, which should have been the real point of concern.

"Goddess?"

"That's right! Listen up—I'm the revered and beloved Goddess of Water, Lady Aqua!"

"Huh? Goddess of Water?"

The moment Wiz heard this, she instinctively took a step back, putting some distance between herself and Aqua.

"I've heard that the followers of the Axis Church are a bunch of lunatics, always doing bizarre and unpredictable things."

"And their goddess must be even more eccentric—I need to stay away from her..."

Her muttered words hit Aqua right in the sore spot.

"You jerk! You jerk! I'm going to purify those blasphemous thoughts out of you!"

The foolish goddess, feeling humiliated in front of Brook and her new friend Darkness, stormed over and grabbed Wiz by the collar, shaking her violently.

The soft-hearted Wiz had no strength to resist, looking utterly miserable as she was manhandled.

It had to be said, though—this personality was really... slurp!

As Aqua shook her, Darkness suddenly noticed something strange:

"Is it just me, or is her body becoming a little translucent?"

"No, I see it too, even though I don't have eyes, yohohoho~"

Brook cracked his usual joke, but then he realized the gravity of the situation and rushed over to pull Aqua away.

"Hey! Stop it, Aqua! Let her go!"

"Phew, saved..."

Wiz collapsed onto the floor, gasping for breath.

As a Goddess of Water, Aqua had a passive ability to purify any liquid she touched into pure water.

But for someone like Wiz, who was a lich by nature, that purification ability was downright deadly!

"Wow! Amazing, Miss Aqua! I didn't know you had this kind of hidden power!"

Darkness was completely thrilled, trembling as she stared at the now-weak Wiz, her face flushed red.

"Please, do the same to me next time! It doesn't have to be too intense—just the same as what you did to her will do!!"

"No way! My purification only works on dirty, evil demons!"

Aqua shook her head.

If it worked on anyone else, she wouldn't have had to suffer such humiliation from a bunch of frogs!

"Wait, Aqua, you're saying your power only works on demons?"

Brook suddenly felt like he had stumbled upon something important.

"Yeah, why would I lie about that?"

The supposedly smart goddess's face remained indifferent as she casually waved her hand, "You already knew that, Brook."

"Then, what about her?"

Brook lifted his bony hand and pointed at Wiz, lying on the ground.

"WHAT?!"

(End of Chapter)